macaque

noun

ma·​caque mə-ˈkak  -ˈkäk 

: any of a genus (Macaca) of chiefly Asian monkeys typically having a sturdy build and including some short-tailed or tailless forms

especially : rhesus monkey

Illustration of macaque

Examples of macaque in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The team had been conducting testing in macaques of an injectable vaccine developed by researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital. —Atul Gawande, New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2025

At first the macaques are intrigued by these strange machines, Reinegger says. —Byrefael Kubersky, science.org, 20 Mar. 2025

Alpha Genesis staff had tried to entice the macaques with food while using humane traps to capture them. —Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY, 25 Jan. 2025

Her $60 million contract with the NIH included studying the effects of the vaccines for the deadly disease on macaques, a type of primate. —Meredith Kile, People.com, 17 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French, from Portuguese macaco, from kaku mangabey, plural makaku, in one or more Bantu languages of Gabon and Congo

First Known Use

1757, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing macaque

• crab-eating macaque
• long-tailed macaque
• stump-tailed macaque

Rhymes for macaque

• alcock
• beanstalk
• bedrock
• boardwalk
• catwalk
• cornstalk
• crosswalk
• deadlock
• feedstock
• fetlock
• flintlock
• goshawk

Kids Definition

macaque

noun

ma·​caque mə-ˈkak  -ˈkäk 

: any of various monkeys mostly from Asia that includes some with either short or no tails

especially : rhesus monkey

Etymology

French, from Portuguese macaco, from makaku, plural of kaku, name for an African monkey in one or more Bantu languages of Gabon and Congo

Medical Definition

macaque

noun

ma·​caque mə-ˈkak  -ˈkäk 

: any of numerous short-tailed Old World monkeys of the genus Macaca and related genera chiefly of southern Asia

especially : rhesus monkey